Bressuire has two buildings of interest: the church of Notre-Dame, which, dating chiefly from the 12th and 15th centuries, has an imposing tower of the Renaissance period; and the castle, built by the lords of Beaumont, vassals of the viscount of Thouars.

The earliest surviving evidence of the town's existence, around the chapel of Saint Cyprien, dates back to the eleventh century.

The parish of St Nicholas, which has since disappeared, was located within the walls of the castle and belonged to the Abbey of Saint-Jouin-de-Marnes.

Among the disasters suffered at various times by the town, its capture from the English and subsequent pillage by French troops under du Guesclin in 1370 is the most memorable.

In January 1973 Bressuire absorbed the former communes Beaulieu-sous-Bressuire, Boismé, Breuil-Chaussée, Chambroutet, Clazay, Noirlieu, Noirterre, Saint-Sauveur-de-Givre-en-Mai and Terves.